📍Abuja | Media360Impact Explainer
From 5.62 billion domestic trips to digital tourism, rural destinations and integrated transport, China’s experience offers lessons for Nigeria. But experts say the model must be adapted to Nigerian realities.
Nigeria and China are exploring a deeper partnership in tourism, cultural exchange, hospitality training and tourism capacity development.
The discussions gained fresh attention during an online seminar on China’s tourism development experience organised by the China Cultural Centre in Nigeria in collaboration with the Nigeria Tourism Development Authority (NTDA), the National Institute for Hospitality and Tourism (NIHOTOUR) and other stakeholders.
But beyond the speeches and diplomatic language, an important question remains:
What exactly has China done to make tourism such a significant part of its domestic economy, and what can Nigeria realistically learn from that experience?
The answer goes beyond tourist attractions.
China’s tourism story is largely about infrastructure, domestic travel, technology, skills, destination management, cultural preservation, rural development and the deliberate connection of tourism with other sectors of the economy.
How big is China’s tourism market?
The scale of China’s tourism industry is enormous.
Official Chinese statistics show that residents made 5.62 billion domestic tourist trips in 2024, representing a 14.8 per cent increase from 2023.
Domestic tourists spent about 5.75 trillion yuan during those trips, an increase of 17.1 per cent year-on-year.
National Bureau of Statistics of China
It is important to clarify that the 5.62 billion figure represents trips, not individual people. One person travelling several times can therefore account for several trips.
China also recorded 131.9 million inbound visits in 2024, including 26.94 million visits by foreign nationals. Foreign visitors accounted for a substantial increase in inbound tourism compared with the previous year.
National Bureau of Statistics of China
The country’s tourism and related industries generated 5.8631 trillion yuan in value added in 2024, equivalent to 4.35 per cent of China’s GDP, according to China’s National Bureau of Statistics.
National Bureau of Statistics of China
That provides an important context for the Nigeria-China conversation: China’s tourism industry is not treated simply as hotels, sightseeing and travel agencies. It is measured as a wider economic ecosystem.
Lesson One: Tourism Works Best as an Economic System
One of the most important lessons from China is that tourism does not operate in isolation.
Transport, accommodation, restaurants, entertainment, retail, culture, technology and local businesses all participate in the tourism economy.
China’s 2024 statistics illustrate this interconnected structure. Within tourism and related industries, transport, accommodation, food services, sightseeing, shopping, entertainment and comprehensive tourism services all contributed to the sector’s value added. National Bureau of Statistics of China
This matters for Nigeria.
A visitor going to a destination does not spend money only on an entrance ticket.
The visitor potentially pays for:
Transportation,Accommodation,Food,Tour guides,Local crafts,Entertainment,Events,Cultural experiences,Shopping,Digital services
Photography and content creation
This means tourism can create opportunities for small businesses, young people, artisans, transport operators, farmers, creatives and hospitality workers.
The World Bank describes tourism as an inclusive and scalable engine for economic development because it connects visitors with long supply chains involving hospitality, transport, food systems, cultural services and retail. Globally, the sector contributed about US$10.9 trillion to GDP and supported 357 million jobs in 2024, according to the World Bank.
